When you choose to become a teacher, one of the most important responsibilities is to have a good relationship with your students.
There are many reasons as to why this is a priority but the most important is that if you don’t get along with your students, your lessons won’t get through to them, even if they are well thought out and planned.
Of course there are many teachers out there that keep things very strict and are considered good teachers but it’s also not as simple as being friendly or not.
Having a good relationship with your students is about getting to know them and be friendly without crossing any lines, you have to remember you are a teacher not a friend.
To make things a bit clearer, these are a few tips you can keep in mind that will help you build a good relationship with your students.
And of course, try to remember their names!
Know What Your Students Like
The first impression of a young student is that the teacher doesn’t have the same interests at all, whether it is in music, movies, TV shows or clothes.
One of the best ways to get someone’s attention is a pleasant surprise, and you will, without a doubt surprise them if you show interest in what they like or maybe mention something that they weren’t expecting like talking about a videogame soundtrack or something out of the ordinary in terms of traditional music education.
Of course, connecting through music would be the best scenario in this regard, as it not only helps you make that connection but it also gives you inspiration to develop your class.
Be Ready to Learn From Your Students
Yes, you may be the teacher and it is your job to teach them music but, a teacher that is willing to learn from their students is even better.
Students are always being pushed to think and work around things, so sometimes they come up with amazing ideas or music that cannot be overlooked.
Some teachers dismiss many ideas from their students because they “clearly know less than the teacher” but this is far from the truth.
Having this approach in mind will also make you be more excited with each lesson, with the hopes you might learn something too, and that excitement will be displayed when you teach.
A Sense of Humor
A teacher with a sense of humor makes everything a more pleasant experience, which is a very important thing in order to make students really appreciate your lessons.
No matter what is being taught, it’s easy for a class to get heavy and hard to process, however, these moments of humor to loosen things up a bit helps keeping things fresh.
Story Time
One of the best way to connect with your students is sharing things about you, maybe an annecdote from another group of students or just a funny story related to the class.
This makes the whole experience a bit more human, which is necessary.
Students, especially younger ones, can see a teacher as this big authority that is very far from their world that it’s almost impossible to empathize.
These “storytelling” times can help you avoid this and maybe spark a few laughs or inspiration.
MTH Features
As a part of the MTH team, we recommend that you make the most out of the features we offer in order to help build your relationship with your students.
Remember to use birthday reminders, as your students will appreciate that you are aware of those important celebration dates.
From automatic lesson notes, to easy scheduling, Music Teacher’s Helper will assist with your needs as a music teacher giving you the space and time you need to build a good relationship with your students, based on trust, respect and a genuine love for music anywhere in the world.
